The
Ultimate Fighting Championship drew its highest viewership
numbers on cable network FX last Saturday, as the UFC
145 prelims attracted an average of 1.6 million viewers to the
Fox-owned station. The telecast just edged the previous FX high of
1.5 million viewers set by the UFC
144 prelims in February.

Headlined by a light heavyweight title clash between former
teammates Jon Jones and
Rashad
Evans, UFC 145 took place at Philips Arena in Atlanta. The
undercard offering featured six bouts in total, four of which aired
on FX. Highlighting the broadcast was a quick submission victory
for heavyweight prospect Travis
Browne over Strikeforce vet Chad Griggs,
as well as a bloody, three-round welterweight affair that saw
Matt
Brown best Stephen
Thompson.

The night prior, Bellator 66 showcased arguably its stoutest card
of the season, topped by a lightweight rematch between former
Bellator champion Eddie
Alvarez and reigning Dream kingpin Shinya Aoki
at the I-X Center in Cleveland. Alvarez easily dispatched the
Japanese submission ace, evening the score by blasting Aoki with a
first-round uppercut before sealing the deal with ground-and-pound.
Lightweight and middleweight tournament semifinals were also
featured, as Brent
Weedman, Rick Hawn,
Maiquel Falcao and Andreas
Spang moved one step closer to a shot at Bellator gold.